The terms are grouped in four blocks: status in the country and documents, authorities and procedure, appeals, and documents and fees. Where we do not cite a rule we say so, and we give no specific deadlines there.
Status in the country and documents
| Term | In plain words | What the rule refers to |
|---|---|---|
| Estancia short stay | Staying in Spain for no more than 90 days. To stay longer you need an extension of stay (prórroga de estancia) or a residence authorisation. The Regulation measures a short stay as 90 days within any 180-day period. | LO 4/2000, art. 30.1-2; RD 1155/2024, art. 47.2 |
| Estancia de larga duración long stay | The status of someone holding a visa or authorisation for studies, student mobility, volunteering or training activities, for as long as it is valid. It is not residence. | RD 1155/2024, art. 47.3 |
| Residencia residence | The status of someone in Spain on a residence visa or residence authorisation while it is valid, among other cases. The law distinguishes two situations: stay (estancia) or residence (residencia). | LO 4/2000, art. 29.1; RD 1155/2024, art. 47.4 |
| Residencia temporal temporary residence | Residence for more than 90 days and less than five years. Authorisations shorter than five years can be renewed. The initial duration and the duration of renewals are set by the Regulation. | LO 4/2000, art. 31.1 |
| Residencia de larga duración long-term residence | Residence with no time limit and the right to live and work on the same terms as Spanish citizens. The law gives the right to those who have held temporary residence for five years continuously and meet the conditions set by the Regulation. | LO 4/2000, art. 32.1-2 |
| Autorización authorisation | A decision by the competent authority that entitles you to be in Spain (stay, residence) and, where relevant, to work. A foreigner over 16 who wants to carry out paid activity needs the corresponding authorisation to reside and work. | LO 4/2000, art. 36.1 |
| Visado visa | A document issued by Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that lets you present yourself at a border crossing and ask to enter for a stay or for residence. Types: airport transit, short stay and long stay. The maximum time to decide visa applications is one month, unless a specific visa has a different deadline. | RD 1155/2024, art. 25.1, disp. adic. 7.ª ap. 2 |
| NIE foreigner identity number | A personal, unique, sequential number assigned to a foreigner for identification. It must appear on every document issued or processed for them. It is granted ex officio when a procedure starts; someone whose only link to Spain is economic, professional or social interests has to apply for it. The time limit is five days, and if there is no answer by then the application is treated as refused. EX-15 form online · How to get a NIE | RD 1155/2024, art. 205.1-4 |
| TIE foreigner identity card | The document that proves a foreigner’s legal situation in Spain. Anyone given a visa or authorisation for more than six months has the right and the duty to obtain it, applying in person within one month of entering Spain or of the authorisation being granted or taking effect. It is personal and valid for as long as the authorisation. | RD 1155/2024, art. 209.1, 2, 3, 7 |
| Huellas fingerprints | The everyday name for the police appointment to get your TIE after the authorisation has been granted. The rule itself requires you to apply for the card in person within one month. The booking procedure is explained on a separate page. | RD 1155/2024, art. 209.1. The word “huellas” does not appear in the text of the rule |
| Cita previa booking an appointment | Booking a slot in advance to be seen at the Oficina de Extranjería, the police or another body. We do not describe a single booking procedure in this glossary: it depends on the province and the type of procedure. | Practical term. No rule is cited here |
| Resguardo proof of submission | A receipt showing that an application has been submitted or that a procedure is under way. What rights it gives depends on the specific procedure. We give no general rule here: check the document itself and the decision on your case. | Practical term. No rule is cited here |
§ Art. 30.1 LO 4/2000: “Estancia es la permanencia en territorio español por un período de tiempo no superior a 90 días”.
Art. 31.1 LO 4/2000: “La residencia temporal es la situación que autoriza a permanecer en España por un período superior a 90 días e inferior a cinco años”.
Art. 31.1 LO 4/2000: “La residencia temporal es la situación que autoriza a permanecer en España por un período superior a 90 días e inferior a cinco años”.
Authorities, procedure and decisions
| Term | In plain words | What the rule refers to |
|---|---|---|
| Oficina de Extranjería immigration office (provincial) | The provincial body that handles extensions of stay, the foreigner identity card and residence and work authorisations. The police services attached to the office assign the NIE. | RD 1155/2024, art. 260.1, 261.3.a |
| UGE-CE Unit for Large Companies and Strategic Groups | The unit that handles the residence authorisations in the “International mobility” section of Law 14/2013: entrepreneurs, highly qualified professionals, training and research, intra-company transfers. The decision is taken by the Directorate-General for Migration. Applications are filed electronically. | Ley 14/2013, art. 69-73, 76.1 |
| Requerimiento request to supply missing documents | An official notice that something is missing from the application. You get ten days to fix the defect or provide the documents; as a general rule days are counted as working days. The period can be extended by up to five days where there are special difficulties. If you do not reply, you may be treated as having withdrawn the request, but only after a formal decision. | Ley 39/2015, art. 68.1-2, 30.2 |
| Desistimiento withdrawal of the application | The procedure ends without a decision on the substance: the applicant is treated as having withdrawn the request, for example for not answering a request to supply missing documents. The authority must issue a decision declaring it. | Ley 39/2015, art. 68.1, 21.1 |
| Resolución decision | The authority’s written decision on your application. It must issue an express decision and notify it in every procedure. The notification must contain the full text, whether it ends the administrative route, which appeals are available, to which body and within what time. It must be sent within ten days of the decision being made. | Ley 39/2015, art. 21.1, 40.2 |
| Notificación notification | The way a decision is communicated to you. Electronic notification is preferred. It counts as delivered when you open it; if electronic delivery is mandatory or you chose it, it counts as rejected after ten calendar days without being opened. | Ley 39/2015, art. 41.1, 43.2 |
| Plazo para resolver time limit to decide | The general maximum time to notify a decision is three months from the day after the application enters the register of the competent body. For visas it is one month. Some procedures have their own deadlines. | LO 4/2000, disp. adic. 1.ª ap. 1; RD 1155/2024, disp. adic. 7.ª |
| Silencio administrativo administrative silence | What happens when the deadline passes and there is no decision. As a general rule, under the immigration law applications may be treated as refused. But for extending a residence authorisation and renewing a work authorisation, silence means approval. A refusal by silence only exists so that you can appeal. | LO 4/2000, disp. adic. 1.ª ap. 1-2; Ley 39/2015, art. 24.1-2 |
| Certificado de silencio certificate of silence | A document proving that silence has taken effect. The body issues it of its own accord within fifteen days after the deadline expires. You can also request it at any time. | Ley 39/2015, art. 24.4 |
| Caducidad lapse of the procedure | The procedure comes to an end. If a procedure you started stalls through your fault, the authority warns that it will lapse after three months. In sanction procedures started by the authority, the procedure lapses if no decision is made in time. It is not the same as a document expiring. | Ley 39/2015, art. 95.1, 25.1.b |
| Prórroga y renovación extension and renewal | Extending an authorisation already granted. The law says “prórroga” for residence and “renovación” for work authorisations and temporary residence; the Regulation uses “renovación”. A stay is extended as a prórroga de estancia. The application must be filed within the period set for your type of authorisation: for family reunification, for instance, the Regulation allows it from two months before expiry to three months after. | LO 4/2000, art. 30.2-3, 31.1, disp. adic. 1.ª ap. 2; RD 1155/2024, art. 71.1 |
| Modificación modification | A change to the conditions of an authorisation already granted. The law expressly mentions changing the territorial or occupational limit on initial residence and work authorisations: one month to decide, and silence means it is granted. Other cases depend on the type of authorisation; more on the dedicated page. | LO 4/2000, disp. adic. 1.ª ap. 3 |
| Reagrupación familiar family reunification | The right of a foreign resident to bring family members to Spain. The law lists who: for instance a spouse, provided they are not separated de facto or legally and the marriage was not entered into in fraud of the law. It can be exercised once the initial residence authorisation has been renewed, with exceptions. | LO 4/2000, art. 16.2, 17.1.a, 18.1 |
§ Disp. adic. 1.ª, ap. 2, LO 4/2000: “Transcurrido dicho plazo sin que la Administración haya dado respuesta expresa, se entenderá que la prórroga o renovación han sido concedidas”.
⚠ Different texts, different words
The immigration law (LO 4/2000) speaks of “prórroga” and “renovación”; the Regulation (RD 1155/2024) mostly says “renovación”. If your decision uses another word, rely on the text of the decision itself and the deadlines it states.
Appeals
| Term | In plain words | What the rule refers to |
|---|---|---|
| Recurso de alzada appeal to a superior authority (alzada) | An administrative appeal to the superior body against decisions that do not end the administrative route. The time limit is one month if the decision is express. The body must decide within three months. Whether your decision ends the administrative route is stated in the notification itself. | Ley 39/2015, art. 121.1, 122.1-2, 40.2 |
| Recurso de reposición optional appeal to the same body (reposición) | An optional appeal to the same body that issued a decision ending the administrative route. The time limit is one month if the decision is express, and it is decided within one month too. You can skip it and go straight to court. But if you file it, you cannot go to court until it is expressly decided or refused by silence. | Ley 39/2015, art. 123-124 |
| Recurso contencioso-administrativo court challenge (contencioso-administrativo) | A challenge to an administrative act before a court. The time limit is two months from the day after notification of the act that ends the administrative route. If there is no express act (silence), it is six months. If a reposición appeal was filed, the period runs from its decision or from its refusal by silence. | Ley 29/1998, art. 46.1, 46.4 |
| Cómputo de plazos counting time limits | If a time limit is given in days, as a general rule they are working days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Counting starts the day after notification or after silence takes effect. Limits in months end on the same day of the month. If the law expressly says “calendar days”, calendar days are counted. | Ley 39/2015, art. 30.2-4 |
Documents and fees
| Term | In plain words | What the rule refers to |
|---|---|---|
| Antecedentes penales criminal record certificate | To authorise temporary residence, the person must have no criminal record in Spain or in previous countries of residence for offences that exist under Spanish law. On renewal, a record is one of the factors assessed. The certificate is obtained in the country of origin; details on the dedicated page. | LO 4/2000, art. 31.5, 31.7.a |
| Apostilla apostille | A certification of the authenticity of the signature and seal on a foreign document, added by the authority of the country where it was issued. Which documents need one, and when, depends on the procedure. More on the page about legalisation. | Practical term. No rule is cited here |
| Traducción jurada sworn translation | A translation certified by a sworn translator. Whether it is needed for a given document depends on the procedure. The general language rule: procedures before Spain’s central administration are conducted in Castilian Spanish. | Ley 39/2015, art. 15.1 |
| Empadronamiento local residents’ register (padrón) | Registration in the municipal register of residents. Everyone living in Spain must register in the municipality where they usually live. The register’s data is evidence of residence and of the usual address. Non-EU nationals without long-term residence must renew their registration every two years or it may be cancelled. | Ley 7/1985, art. 15, 16.1 |
| Tasa administrative fee | A payment for processing the procedure. Under the Regulation, in procedures other than visas the authority checks of its own accord that it has been paid. The voluntary payment period is ten days. For residence and work authorisations and the TIE it is self-assessed: the person liable calculates and pays it. Amounts and the payment form are on the dedicated page; we do not give them here. | RD 1155/2024, disp. adic. 12.ª ap. 1, 2, 4 |
| Mercurio filing platform | Online platform for filing applications with Extranjería and for adding documents to a case already filed. | — |
| DEHú notification mailbox | Dirección Electrónica Habilitada Única: the single electronic mailbox for official notifications. A notification not opened in time may be treated as received once the deadline passes. | — |
| Hoja informativa information sheet | Official information sheet from the Ministry on a specific procedure. It is a guide: the rules in force on the filing date apply. | — |
| Expediente case file | The case file for an application. Keep the expediente number after filing: it is used to check the status. | — |
| Cuenta ajena employment | Employment: working for an employer. | — |
| Cuenta propia self-employment | Self-employment: running your own business or profession. | — |
| Autónomo self-employed | A self-employed person registered with Seguridad Social and the tax agency. | — |
| Vida laboral work record | A Seguridad Social record of work periods, employers and regimes. It can be requested online. | — |
ℹ How to read this page
Definitions follow the text of the rules and, where there is no rule, are described neutrally and without deadlines. Always look for the deadlines in your own case in the decision itself: it must state the possible appeals, the body and the time limit.
Rules referred to
- LO 4/2000: Ley Orgánica 4/2000, de 11 de enero, sobre derechos y libertades de los extranjeros en España y su integración social
- RD 1155/2024: Real Decreto 1155/2024, de 19 de noviembre, por el que se aprueba el Reglamento de la Ley Orgánica 4/2000
- Ley 39/2015: Ley 39/2015, de 1 de octubre, del Procedimiento Administrativo Común de las Administraciones Públicas
- Ley 29/1998: Ley 29/1998, de 13 de julio, reguladora de la Jurisdicción Contencioso-administrativa
- Ley 7/1985: Ley 7/1985, de 2 de abril, Reguladora de las Bases del Régimen Local
- Ley 14/2013: Ley 14/2013, de 27 de septiembre, de apoyo a los emprendedores y su internacionalización
Keep reading
- Booking the fingerprint appointment
- TIE: form EX-17
- Apostille and legalisation of documents
- What to do if you were refused
- Long-term residence
- Changing your authorisation
- Consultations